Hasan Muthalib: Seven Decades of Malaysian Cinema | What's Stewing S3-Ep7

Hasan Abdul Muttalib has spent six decades in Malaysian cinema as an animator, filmmaker, educator and critic. At 80, he sits down with us for a long and honest conversation about where the industry went wrong and what it would take to fix it. We talk about the difference between making a film and making a movie, what film grammar and film language really mean, and why he believes most local directors never learned the second one. We go through the history and politics of FINAS, the state of funding, festival juries, Wajib Tayang, film archives, RTM, streaming, and the 80th anniversary of the Malayan Film Unit and Filem Negara that passed without a celebration. He also talks about the films and filmmakers he admires, and what a story needs before it deserves an international audience. The views in this episode belong to our guest. CHAPTERS 0:00 A film or a movie? The question nobody answers 3:17 Is Malaysian cinema better now than in the 1950s and 60s? 10:23 Classical Malay literature and point of view in storytelling 14:22 The lost guru and student tradition 17:15 Film grammar versus film language 25:15 Who is to blame when most directors do not know film language? 30:25 How FINAS began and where it went wrong 38:33 What a real national cinema institution looks like 47:49 What would an Oscar-worthy Malaysian film look like? 58:34 Are we still making artificial cinema? 1:05:44 Why Malaysia never built a film criticism culture 1:11:51 Brilliant films, but no film culture 1:19:11 Streaming, social media followers and casting 1:25:36 The youngest generation of filmmakers 1:28:04 Self-taught versus formal film education 1:34:42 30 minutes with every decision maker 1:36:57 Who should sit on a festival jury 1:44:50 Wajib Tayang and TV drama 1:48:53 Film archives and preserving our history 1:51:37 RTM and film appreciation 2:01:10 The funding system and the second approval panel 2:03:45 Should proven directors have to pitch? 2:09:00 80 years of the Malayan Film Unit and Filem Negara 2:15:25 Closing thoughts LISTEN TO WHAT'S STEWING Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/3xctk9zc Apple Podcasts: http://tinyurl.com/5n6tcc9v SUBSCRIBE    / @creativestew   CONNECT WITH CREATIVE STEW Website: https://www.creativestew.tv Instagram: instagram.com/creativestewtv TikTok: tiktok.com/@creativestew Facebook: facebook.com/creativestew LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/creative-stew X (Twitter): x.com/creativestewtv Email: info@creativestew.tv #WhatsStewing #CreativeStew #MalaysianCinema #HasanMutallib #Filmmaking #Podcast #CreatedbyCreativeStew LISTEN TO WHAT'S STEWING Spotify: http://tinyurl.com/3xctk9zc Apple Podcasts: http://tinyurl.com/5n6tcc9v SUBSCRIBE    / @creativestew   CONNECT WITH CREATIVE STEW Website: https://www.creativestew.tv Instagram: instagram.com/creativestewtv TikTok: tiktok.com/@creativestew Facebook: facebook.com/creativestew LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/creative-stew X (Twitter): x.com/creativestewtv Email: info@creativestew.tv #WhatsStewing #CreativeStew #ShamylOthman #Khadam #Rahsia #MalaysianHorror #MalaysianCinema #Filmmaking #Podcast #CreatedbyCreativeStew